Ride #3 (Wash. County Edition) Tualatin to Sherwood Library

Another sunny weekend, another pleasant bike ride to a new library...this one about 6 miles each way, on relatively flat roads.



This nice statue of bronze geese greets you as you enter Tualatin, about one block from the library. Here's a better image taken by someone with a nicer camera. It is award winning, and really quite a nice way to welcome visitors.



Pausing to look at the mural at the entrance to the Tualatin Library, I headed out to ride on the dreaded Tualatin-Sherwood Road; aptly named, as it joins the two towns within the 6 mile span.







Why do I call it dreaded? Well, mainly because I have renamed it "road of 1000 trucks" which rumble by as you pedal away. Then there's the industrial-strength company names located along it: Chem-Dry, Plasti-Fab, etc...





A welcome sight is the sign for Sherwood Old Town, where I turned off to a much quieter, and soon very country-ish road, albeit quite steep.





After much peddling and huffing and puffing, I was rewarded with some very nice landscape views, before I paused to realize I'd overshot the turnoff to the library and had to double back, thus lengthening my ride by a few hundred feet in elevation and about 2 miles in distance. Oh well, all good exercise!





Near the library, I passed a park with a soccer field, adorned by a freakishly large ball...



...and soon arrived at the library, noticing immediately that a Sesame Donut shop was right next to it. Happy day! And unlike the Tigard Library, this one was open for business. Did I get a donut? No I did not. But I did get a little ice cream. Hey, a guy's gotta cool down, right?



Stepping inside, I quickly located the CD section, and appreciated the stool left thoughtfully there for browsers like me.





I made my selections: For something new, The Vivian Girls' Share The Joy, which Allmusic gave a much better review than I would've. The playing's okay, I guess, but the singing...well, it's a challenging listen to these ears. For something familiar, Canada's New Pornographers' Challengers, one of their most excellent offerings. This, friends, is pop music at its most sublime. Hooks you can chew on for hours, quirky but beautiful lyrics and melodic twists that keep things interesting. Give 'em a listen!



Time for the ride back to the car, this time taking a side route off the main thoroughfare, called Herman Road. The highlight here, aside from mercifully lighter traffic for several miles, was this interesting collection of rusty cars and trucks. One might say "white trash" but if you do it right, in the right location (which this is), it becomes a form of folk art. Well done!

Ride #2 (Wash. County Edition) Tigard to Tualatin Library

After what seems like about three straight months with high temperatures and no rain, this ride was a cooler, rainier affair. No matter; it was still warm enough to enjoy, and as often happens, I wish I could relate the smells of a freshly watered world. This fall, don't let the rain keep you inside! Go out there and experience it!



Leaving the Tigard Library, after a short ride down Hall Boulevard, I approached Cook Park, where this majestic willow tree welcomed me:



Soon the path led to the Tualatin Community Park, marked by picturesque views of the Tualatin river and a train bridge:





Not long after this I came to the Tualatin Library, with this bronze sculpture out front. I dunno, do you think this woman is telling a story to the kids or yelling at them? Sorry, but my impression is the latter. Maybe if she was holding a book?





As I walked into the library and took a picture, one of the librarians appeared to go on high alert as to my activity. Coincidentally, my cell phone began to ring and as I paused to look at it, the librarian rushed over and pleasantly - but forcefully - told me to "Please take your call in the lobby." It was a funny moment, as I'm always wishing someone would deal with "obnoxious" people in public places, and this time, it was, apparently, me! I was more than happy to retreat to the lobby to take my call.



This week's music selections included one unknown (Skylar Grey), one sort-of known (Dum Dum Girls), and one known (Husker Du).



The Skylar Grey album was non-distinct, except for one direct Queen/Freddie Mercury reference (!synchronicity alert!) in "C'Mon Let Me Ride" (at the 1:07 mark).

The Dum Dum Girls album Only In Dreams, from 2011, was what came before last year's Too True, which made my Favorite Albums of 2014 list. Call it "Girl Group Goth" - I love it. The song "Coming Down" is a highlight. Just listen to those pure, sustained high notes!!

As for Husker Du...well, this song from the album Flip Your Wig says it all, with shouted vocals and insistent, driving guitar. Whew!

One other thing: I don't normally take pictures of, or comment on, churches, but I saw these two on this ride. Tell me: Which one would you be most likely to attend? I know my choice:





So, a nice relatively short ride, albeit a wet one, where the biking almost went faster than the automobile traffic (it's dense down there in Tigard/Tualatin land!). Next ride, to Sherwood!

Library Ride #1: Washington County Edition, Home to Tigard

Well, with every goal there is often an obstacle (or two, or three). One of this year's goals was to run a fundraising 5K once a month for a year. I made it to July, but in August I was forced to take a break from running due to Achilles and heel pain that was not getting better by on-the-fly modifications (switching to a track, sitting down more at work, etc). To replace the running for a while, and hopefully keep some fitness going, I took out my trusty (not rusty) old bike and started riding it. Then this weekend, it struck me (a thought, not a car), how about a Library Ride Challenge, as opposed to last year's Library Run? Something to take my mind off possibly (well, now probably) having to skip this year's Portland Half Marathon in October.

So, in the spirit of Freddie/Queen: "Get on my bike and ride!"

To start off this first leg of the trek, I left my house and after a short while arrived at the Fanno Creek Trail entrance near the Garden Home Rec Center. It's a short and sweet little trail that joins up with Allen Boulevard after about a mile and a half.





After a bit on Allen, I headed toward Denney Road to pick up the second portion of the Fanno Creek Trail, noting this stony large bear along the way, before immediately running into a more literal obstacle, a path closure:





However, I noticed a "detour" sign, so dutifully followed it, going past some nicely palatial names (Duke, Princess, King, etc) and very quickly joined up with the Trail:





This is a fun section of the Fanno Trail, where you can watch people having a go at Frisbee golf (and every time I see them I think "I've gotta get the kids down here!").



But whoops, another path-block, this time an actual fence built right over the path that's been there for years! So, time for the "path less traveled," in this case a dirt path clearly worn by people who weren't satisfied with the longer detours being suggested, this one running just to the left of the paved path. As I proceeded, looking down at the path, I saw that it had turned into quite a little pond/stream of its own, with happy ducks and all. Where destruction goes, a new ecosystem quickly establishes itself (always look at the bright side, I say).







Exiting the Fanno Creek/pond/lake area, I exclaimed "Helloooo Tigard!" A couple of nice Old West style buildings on this road to welcome a visitor:



Nice skate park here too. Fun watching the kids go around and over obstacles. One kid flew right up to me and jumped off his board, uninjured. Sorry I didn't catch that on my camera phone in time - quite impressive. I used to want to try it, but rehab from injury is something I'd rather spend as little time on as possible these days!



About a mile or so later, I arrived at the destination: The Tigard Public Library.



As per my habit, I anticipated going in and enjoying a coffee (maybe even a donut) but OH NO! It was closed, with the dreaded "until further notice," which generally means "we have no idea, probably never again." Oh well, better for my health anyway. Yay...



After a short scan of the CD racks, I decided this time I would pick up two items: One, something new and unfamiliar, and Two, something known and sure to be enjoyed again. In this case, the former was an artist called Land Of Kush, the album The Big Mango being described on Amazon as "a love letter to Cairo." Yeah, that works: Very world-beat-y, tribal sounding, with not a lot of rock instrumentation but that's okay every once in a while; and the latter, a David Bowie live from 2003 double CD set called A Reality Tour, which is as the Allmusic review describes: "no surprises but plenty of pleasure." Indeed, I enjoyed playing it very much, with lots of old favorite songs as well as some of his newer stuff played with enthusiasm by his band in front of a very charged up audience in Dublin, Ireland.



Next week, I'll continue my journey south, from Tigard to Tualatin, and see what new sights and sounds await.